Number Talks

Joy took a class this summer that ties in well with our new program, Math in Focus. After she shared with me some of the strategies presented in the class, I asked her to write a blog post about what she learned. I copied and put one sheet of information in your box, however, Joy has more information if you are interested.
Thanks for sharing Joy!!

Guest Post from Joy Bartholomew:

This summer I took a class called Instructional Strategies for Math Teachers.  It was a good class that I think helped to prepare me for Math in Focus.  I think it will be offered again next summer if anyone is interested.

 

In this class, they focused a lot on Number Talks.  (We did one in class with the representative from Math in Focus in in-service.)

You give the students a problem they can do mentally and then discuss the different strategies they used to solve the problem.  Sometimes, you can also look at the strategies and order them in a sequence by the different ways they relate to one another.

For lower grades K-2, you can also try something called “Quick Images.”  Looking at various images (usually dots) for a brief period of time (a few seconds) and then asking students “how many dots did you see?”  They then share their strategies to explain how they know the amount they saw.  “How do you know you saw 6 dots?”

Both methods offer opportunity for mental math, math discussions, and seeing more than one way to solve a problem.  I know we are trying to get Math in Focus figured out first, but Number Talks may definitely be something to think about trying in the future.  I know I am. I think they would be a valuable addition.  It is not something you have to do every day, but doing them on a consistent, regular basis is good.

 

Anyway, if you are interested in trying some of these types of problems, here are some resources you can look at.

https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/visualizing-number-combinations

www.teachingchannel.com (search for videos of teachers doing number talks with their students)

 

 

You can definitely google “Number Talks” or “Quick Images” and find even more information.

 

I have some articles/handouts on Number Talks too.


Joy